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I am renting a condo and it is not up to Virginia building code. I did not know the code before I moved in. The condo does not have a deadbolt lock and does not have a bar on the sliding glass door. Virginia building code says there has to be a deadbolt lock on the door. My landlord refuses to fix it, can I complain to the condo association? They charge a move in fee and I have to pay pet fees, etc. to them, but they didn't make sure the condo was up to code! The handbook for the condo association says that it is the owner's responsibility to maintain locks. What can I do?

2007-07-16 03:56:29 · 3 answers · asked by Miss Alison 2 in Business & Finance Renting & Real Estate

My neighbor who lives in the building next door told me about the building code. Here is the section - it is from the State of Virginia website in the Landlord and Tenant Act (http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+coh+55-248.13:1+402573).

2007-07-16 05:16:41 · update #1

Here is the url for the code of the County of Fairfax where I live: http://www.municode.com/resources/gateway.asp?pid=10051&sid=46. It says that for multi-family dwellings constructed before 1976, "(1) Any landlord who rents five (5) or more dwelling units in any one (1) building shall upon the written request of the tenant install a deadbolt lock with not less than five-eighths-inch ( 5/8") throw case-hardened steel inserts on all exterior swinging doors."

Dwellings constructed after 1976 must conform with the Uniform Statewide Building Code for new multifamily construction.

2007-07-16 05:23:22 · update #2

3 answers

Uh....maintain the locks.

Put in a deadbolt and the lock/bar on the sliding glass door.

However, as a side note, whenever you move out, I would take the sliding door bar and "slip a pin" out of the deadbolt so that it too does not work.

2007-07-16 04:00:45 · answer #1 · answered by Mr. G 6 · 0 1

It's entirely possible that the condo was built before the code was enacted and is grandfathered under the old code. If that's the case then the LL is under no obligation to bring the unit up to the current code.

2007-07-16 11:07:55 · answer #2 · answered by Bostonian In MO 7 · 1 0

What excuse is the owner giving for not fixing it?

Who told you it was out of code? Was it someone that knows the building codes there?

2007-07-16 11:01:09 · answer #3 · answered by Mike 6 · 0 0

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